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Clackamas Print
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newspaper since
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
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Volume 42, Issue 19
At least we’rè recycling...
n
John Hurlburt Clackamas Print
Last Tuesday 18 boxes of new computer paper fill a recycling bin near McLoughlin Hall. The source of the dis
carded paper is unknown, but the wasted paper would have cost $2357.82 according to Officemax.com.
Part-timers experience shadowed losses
John Hurlburt
News Editor
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Many part-time faculty members through
out campus have been experiencing a full-
time problem, as the average number of hours
they work has either dropped or been reduced
to zero, in the category 5 storm o f budget woes
striking at the core of Clackamas.
In a survey sent out to all of Clackamas’
part-time facility members by the Part-Time
Faculty Association (PTFA), it was discovered
that out of foe 73 people who responded to
foe survey, 26 percent said they had less work
than in spring 2008 ,and 15 percent said they
had no work compared to spring 2008.
PTFA President Rosemary Teetor knows
that budget cuts are foe reason behind foe
slump, but said that the problem of diminished
hours isn’t apparent in foe school’s budget
“There is an impact to part-time faculty
from mid-year budget cuts that are virtu
ally invisible unless you are a part-timer,” said
Teetor.
Part-time faculty cuts don’t show up like
foe 20 full-time positions that were removed
by Clackamas administrators during foe recent
budget slashes. Instead, since part timers are
hired at foe department level and not by human
resources (HR), part-time faculty numbers are
not kept on foe books in HR, according to Jan
Godfrey, Clackamas vice president.
Godfrey commented that by sending out
foe survey foe PTFA were “trying to figure out
•what foe impact of foe budget reductions were
for all of Clackamas.”
Teetor said that foe cuts were definitely
noticeable to those who were employed as
part-timers. During fall term, CCC boasted
a squad of about 350 part-timers supplement
ing full-time faculty on campus. Now during
spring term that number is down to about
305.
Scott Giltz, Dean of foe Technical Career
Education Division and a former part-time
member himself, sees part-time faculty mem
bers as an indispensable part of the college for
a variety of reasons.
“They’re incredibly valuable,” Giltz said.
“Part-timers bring the most relative and up to
date trends into the classroom.”
Many part-timers in Giltz’s department
hold jobs outside of the college and this
allows them to bring what is going on in the
real world into the classroom. Without them,
he believes that there is “no way” his depart
ment could offer the same level of education
without them.
“We have many programs offered only
because of part-time staff,” Giltz commented.
Another advantage, according to Giltz, to
having part-time faculty members working for
foe college is that it allows foe college to get
a presence in outside corporations and build
mutually beneficial partnerships.
Teetor said that a part-timer is anyone
who has not been formally hired full-time. At
Clackamas, this means that part-timers can
work the equivalent of fill 1-time but without
John Shufelt Clackamas Print
Part-timer Tim Pantages helps stu
dent Brett Sanchez.
foe advantage of full-time benefits. This is
almost unique to CCC, many colleges don't
let part-timers work more than a certain num
ber of hours.
Although these freelancing teachers are
beneficial to foe college, their situation can
seem unfair, Teetor mentioned.
“There’s an inherent unfairness in foe
whole part-time faculty situation,” Teetor said,
emphasizing that it’s not just at Clackamas
but at all colleges.
Much in foe way grease fills the spac
es between bearings, letting a wheel turn
smoothly, part-time faculty fill foe gaps in
curriculum without the school having to hire
full-time employees.
“We are the budget balancers,” Teetor
expressed.
At Clackamas, part-timers have worked
up to 30 years and some also work equivalent
hours as full-time instructors but without foe
benefits. Even with this much service, they
have not been offered an official full-time
position.
“If there were an option to be hired on
full-time, I think half to two-thirds of my
people would take it,” Teetor expressed, add
ing logically, “You get benefits!”
Giltz views foe situation a little differ
ently.
“I guess it depends on your perspec
tive. I always knew there were no guaran
tees as part-time staff,” Giltz acknow ledged.
“Sometimes it seems unfair ... but that’s foe
gig you sign up for.”
Although there are downsides to being a
free-lance instructor, upsides are to be found
in foe status.
“It’s foe flexibility that’s attractive to
them,” Giltz said about part-timers in his
department.
Whether or not foe part-time instructor
situation is fair or not, Giltz acknowledges
their value.
“I don’t really know how rtiuch I can
emphasize how valuable they are to our divi
sion,” Giltz expressed with gratitude.